The 2026 Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum, scheduled to take place at the Food and Agriculture Organization's headquarters in Rome from October 13 to 16, will see 20 African countries showcase government-led agrifood investment plans. This largest African participation in the forum since its inception aims to attract global investors, development banks, foundations, and private-sector partners. Countries from Angola to Zimbabwe will present opportunities across various agricultural value chains.
The investment plans focus on transforming Africa's agricultural sector into an industrial powerhouse. According to the FAO, participating governments have identified value chains and territories where public and private investment could significantly impact poverty, hunger, and inequality. The plans provide investors with clearer financing needs, expected returns, and implementation arrangements, making agricultural projects more bankable.
The diversity of investment opportunities is substantial, with several countries targeting staple food chains such as rice, maize, cassava, and soybean. Others are developing export-oriented opportunities in coffee, cocoa, cashew, tea, avocado, and honey. Livestock, poultry, dairy, fisheries, and aquaculture also feature prominently in the investment plans.
Beyond production, governments are identifying the infrastructure needed to unlock these markets. This includes mechanization, irrigation, seed multiplication, agro-processing facilities, and special economic zones. These investments can transform agriculture from a predominantly primary activity into a network of connected industries, creating additional businesses, skills, jobs, and tax revenues.
The real economic opportunity lies in capturing more value from every tonne produced. A farmer who sells raw cassava captures only part of the value created by the crop. Processing cassava into starch, flour, industrial inputs, or other finished products creates more value. The same logic applies across Africa's agricultural economy, with coffee, cocoa, milk, and fish being transformed into higher-value products.
Regional integration can make this opportunity even larger. The 2026 forum will showcase regional initiatives, including a Southern Africa programme covering 11 countries and an initiative focused on African Small Island Developing States. A special event will examine financing opportunities along the Lobito Corridor, connecting Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zambia.
The success of this initiative depends on governments creating conditions that make long-term investment possible. Private investors have a crucial role, but governments must provide roads, storage, electricity, irrigation, finance, technology, market access, processing facilities, and predictable policies. If Africa can combine its land, farmers, technology, capital, and expanding markets, agriculture could become one of the continent's defining industrial opportunities.
Key points
- Twenty African countries to present agrifood investment plans in Rome
- Investment plans focus on transforming agriculture into an industrial powerhouse
- Regional integration and infrastructure development crucial for success
